29 Sep 2008

Well, while watching the stock market crash & burn today, I decided that perhaps this isn't the best day to point to the usualanti-google-baloneystuff... Even crusaders need a day-off...

Instead, I'll point your attention to some very good articles about Android...

Up to now, in most of our previous blog posts, we have tried to highlight how Android is NOT a G-phone, but a software platform. We tried to spot all those articles and authors who totally missed the point..

The articles mentioned in this post are not about the 'how-much-is-it-gonna-sell' or 'why-doesn't-it-have-a-camera' or 'my-iPhone-is-prettier-than-your-G1' type of articles...

They examine the various ways that Android - as a software platform - will drive innovation, help expand the developer community, and provide great services for the end-user...

The first article, Visa to Bank on Google Android by Google Watch, examines Visa's announced mobile apps for Android. The most interesting part reads:

"The Visa mobile apps will also leverage Google's location-based technology to find local merchants where customers can redeem Visa offers and find ATMs that accept Visa. Visa is also developing a payment application that will let Visa consumers make mobile payments in retail stores, or on the go, over wireless networks."

The second article, Funambol Announces Open Source Mobile Sync App for Android by the AndroidGuys, shows how fast Android can (by its open-source nature) provide - through a healthy developer community - all the 'missing ingredients' that where spotted (on day-one) on the platforms first device..."One of the bigger complaints to come out of Tuesday’s Android/G1 unveiling was the lack of desktop and PIM sync. When asked whether or not the G1 would support MS Exchange, the answer was along the lines of , “Well, no. We’re gonna leave that up to developers and third party guys.“ "

The day after the G1 was announced, Funambol issued a press release for their Google Android Push Email and PIM Client. Thinking in terms of Apple’s MobileMe, they’ve created a free, open source application that syncs and share contacts popular desktop apps such as MS Outlook and webmail such as Yahoo!, Gmail and AOL. On top of that, you can use it sync between mobile devices too."

"Motorola already has 50 people on its Android team and is growing that to 350...That is a huge commitment that shows how big a bet Motorola is making on Android...

This same source has also seen people from Nokia and Verizon at a recent Android developer conference....

Neither Nokia nor Verizon are official members of the Open Handset Alliance.... Nokia may have an Android team sniffing around, which is smart even if it is for nothing other than to gain competitive intelligence....

...if Android takes off, Nokia could decide to hedge its bets and launch its own Android phone."

Finally, the fourth and last article, HTC Dream is the Amiga for Android, again by the AndroidGuys, will make anyone over 30 smile and think about Androids' true nature...

"I see the HTC Dream being the Amiga of mobile phones... I say this as the G1 is really geared as a platform for programmers to hack away on and to create applications for future generations of Android phones...

This open innovation is what differentiates Android from Amiga...

That’s why the G1 is really the Geek Phone for programmers to use as a breadboard to openly innovate for future generations of Android phones to become the mobile supercomputer phones for businesses and consumers in general..."